Instagram Masterminds Exit Facebook, but They're Not Done Yet

Instagram’s on the lookout for new leadership as its creators take an exit.

In a blog post, co-founders Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger confirmed they’re leaving Facebook to start a new project. The masterminds behind Instagram won’t immediately jump into the next phase of their careers, but Systrom says they’ll evaluate what inspires them and “match that with what the world needs.”

While they’re saying a new project awaits, Bloomberg reports that there was increasing friction between the duo and Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg. The report suggests the Menlo Park-based company was putting too much pressure on Instagram for future growth.

Even after Facebook took ownership, the brand remained independent. There has rarely been a connection between Instagram and Facebook. Yet we’ve seen a few features copied from one and ported over to the other.

Both stayed with Instagram since the beginning. That’s unlike most people in Silicon Valley, where it’s normal to get gobbled up by a larger entity, fall into the background, and eventually leave for something new. Systrom and Krieger remained in charge of Instagram.

The service was acquired by Facebook more than six years ago, and ever since it’s exploded into a dominant platform around the world. Instagram has more than 1 billion monthly active users. As for the Stories feature, it blew past Snapchat and continues attracting users that like the time-sensitive nature of bite-sized content.

We shouldn’t expect anything different for Instagram in the immediate future, but maybe losing the co-founders will mean long-term changes are in the works. That’ll take some time to discover, though.